By Néstor CASTIGLIONE

In an era where the ostentatious and vulgar, where naked careerism and self-obsession dominate culture, the single-minded devotion to cultivating the beautiful can be a revolutionary act.

“Pleasure is the only law,” the young Claude Debussy once retorted to his teacher. Taking inspiration from disparate sources – the rich chromaticism of Wagner, the original harmonies and voice settings of Mussorgsky’s best music, Javanese gamelan, the spare crypto-medievalism of his friend Satie’s early work, the elusive and erotic verses of Mallarmé and Laloy – Debussy forged an idiom all his own, at once audacious and strikingly beautiful.

The first of his two volumes of “Preludes” is virtually a summary of all these qualities.

Pianist Charles Fierro will be presenting selections from the first volume on Wednesday, May 3 at the Glendale Noon Concerts.

“The beauty of Debussy’s music arises from [his]  innovations in harmony, rhythm, texture and form and from his sensuous approach to the colors of sound,” he explained. “He often employs original progressions and exotic scales.”

His “Preludes” are successors to Chopin’s “24 Preludes, Op. 28,” but, Fierro explained, Debussy’s compositional approach is wholly his own. For one thing they’re not related by key as the Chopin preludes are.

Another original aspect that Debussy introduces is the descriptive or poetic titles that he appends to each prelude.

“The titles appear after an ellipsis in parenthesis at the end of each prelude, evidently because he wanted the pieces to be heard primarily as absolute music rather than as description. They are, however, descriptive and audiences appreciate the titles,” he said.

Charles Fierro will be performing seven selections from Debussy’s first volume of “Preludes” at the next Glendale Noon Concert that take place from 12:10 p.m. to 12:40 p.m. at the sanctuary of the Glendale City Church (610 E. California Ave., cross street with Isabel Street). Admission is free. For more information, visit http://glendalenoonconcerts.blogspot.com/ or call (818) 244-7241.

  Nestor CASTIGLIONE